Dodai, an electric bike manufacturer, has announced an expansion plan to revolutionise urban transportation through battery-swapping infrastructure and local electric motorcycle production. In an exclusive interview with Addis Fortune, Yuma Sasaki, CEO and founder of Dodai, said that his company plans to deploy 30 battery-swapping stations in six months, 100 within a year, and 400 in two years. These will enable rapid battery exchanges, boosting efficiency for both riders and service providers. Yuma stated a data-driven, flexible approach to station placement, citing its experience with LUUP in Japan, which deployed over 30,000 e-scooter stations. The company admitted the difficulty of accurately predicting ideal locations from the start. “This requires ongoing analysis and refinement using real-world data over three to four years,” Yuma said. “Still, our core strategy is to place stations near main roads, with sufficient parking, secure environments, and stable three-phase power of at least 20 kWh per site. Each station will hold around 20 battery units; each expected to be swapped three to four times daily, in total 60 to 80 swaps per station per day, depending on capacity and efficiency. According to Yuma, Dodai plans to produce 3,500 electric motorcycles in 2025. To build trust and strengthen institutional ties, it recently donated battery-less motorcycles to key city agencies, including the Addis Abeba Transport Bureau and police.
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